Life Unexpected
by mwoodscc
Summary: River discovers that she's pregnant with the 11th Doctor's child. How will they navigate this new challenge as they travel through time and space from adventure to adventure in the Tardis? Expect everything from romance, to drama, to discoveries, to space fights, to meetings with old friends & foes, to adventure, & of course running through time and space in "Life Unexpected"!
1. Smashing Start

Life Unexpected Chapter 1:

"Smashing Start"

Professor River Song sat on a dark brown couch in the small, ancient artifact cluttered, living room of her house, staring down at her hands. She wore a crisp white button up blouse and black dress pants with black-heeled boots.

"Damn! Damn! Damn!" She cursed under her breath to the silence of her house. Her golden brown curls shook slightly as the words fell from her lips. Her green eyes blazed, as she seemed to drift between intensely focusing on her hands and then trailing off and seeing practically nothing.

River clenched her hands into fist as she felt anger start to boil deep inside her. She was mad at multiple things. First and foremost was her condition. Second was herself. Third was the Doctor.

And what was her condition? Pregnancy, three months along, 12 weeks in fact, with a part Time Lord part Human fetus. When she thought about why she was angry with her condition, with her pregnancy, it wasn't that she was angry with the fetus itself, it wasn't its fault. It didn't decide to be created. No, she was mad just because it was there. It was something that shouldn't have been biologically possible.

It shouldn't have been possible for multiple reasons. The first reason was due to what she was told while under the care of the Silence and Madame Kovarian as young girl. They told her that with all of the experimenting and programing that had been done her; her body would never be able to bear children, just like her mother. Maybe that was the case at that time, but she had regenerated twice since then. Maybe the regenerations fixed her body and allowed her to have the opportunity to have children once more?

The second reason for it not being possible was that she and the Doctor had different genes, different DNA. He was a Time Lord and she was a human, granted with Time Lord DNA, but still mostly human. Most species in the universe were not compatible. Time Lord DNA was super complex and River had come to understand that, like the people it's DNA came from, Time Lord DNA was dominant among most other species and would usually not result in procreation due to it coming into contact with a lesser form of DNA. It was a way to weed out the lesser species from mixing with them and to make sure that Time Lords were still an all high and mighty pure species.

River was the anomaly to this though, even though she was human, her exposure to the time vortex while in utero had allowed her to develop Time Lord characteristics. Maybe that's why the Time Lord DNA inserted into her, as a child was able to link up with her normal human DNA, and make her the psychopath turned wife that she to this day.

The third reason why her condition shouldn't have happened was because River was using a contraceptive, a shot every month that kept her regular and baby free…until now.

And the fourth and final reason why this pregnancy shouldn't have been possible was that the Doctor himself said that it wouldn't happen.

Now River knew that the last reason was weak, but she believed her Doctor. After knowing that her body had been tampered with when she was young, knowing that DNA was practically incompatible, and that she herself was preventing it as best she could, she truly believed that when her Doctor told her that it wouldn't happen for all of the above reasons, she thought that it wouldn't really happen.

But it had happened. She was pregnant, with the Doctor's child. A Time Tot.

"A Time Tot," River chuckled softly to herself as she rolled her eyes and scanned over the artifacts of the many archeology expeditions she had gone on over the years. What she thought was never going to happen, was. All of those years after the recovering from the Silence and Kovarian, accepting what had happened to her, what she was, what she had done, and what she would never experience. Now she had the chance to actually experience it. But could she?

River turned on the couch and looked out of the window while biting her lower lip. Even though it was only a little after 1:00 in the afternoon, the sky was black. It was dark because River lived on the moon, right near the Luna University where she had studied archeology, became a doctor, and was now currently teaching as a professor. Somewhere out in black star filled universe was her husband, the Doctor, the last Time Lord, and she was going to literally rock his world. She was now presented with the chance to actually experience motherhood, while working a career that she absolutely loved, while also enjoying excursions around the universe with her time traveling husband.

Her husband.

This was where she questioned if she would actually be able to experience the idea that she was entertaining. Would the Doctor be interested in her pregnancy? Would he help support her, emotionally, physically, financially? She of course could handle all of the expenses, but a partner during the pregnancy and with the parenting would mean so much. But River had no idea if she would be able to meet up with a correct version of the Doctor. She was thankful that for time being she was meeting a version of her husband who had known who she was and who had known that they were married. In fact, their last four meetings had been exactly linear and the same for both. These last four months they had both met each other in the correct time order. Maybe the Tardis really was taking him where he needed be; even before he himself or she knew that they needed to be together. Maybe the Tardis could sense her pregnancy before either one of them and was trying to keep them together, in order. She knew she had to thank the old girl the next time she got the chance. That Tardis was always looking out for her.

River sighed as she stood up from the couch and walked to her bathroom. With each step she felt the anger that she held melt away. There wasn't any reason for her to be angry about her pregnancy. What's done was done, and no matter how unexpected or startling it was, she knew that she was slowly coming to peace with it, accepting it. She was now just feeling embarrassed that she wasn't expecting it to happen and by this point in time, that unexpected pregnancies could still happen and that she was now one of the statistics.

But embarrassed or not, this pregnancy was a miracle of sorts and it was a chance for her to have some normalcy in her crazy life. Oh she loved the crazy, the running for her life, the universe ending, the time happening all at once, the life restoring kisses, the flirting, the romantic moments, the sexy moments, and the once in a lifetime moments that she experienced with her Doctor. But River knew at that instant, with all those wonderful things she loved about her life, something more important was beginning to take hold and alter the way she looked at things.

If she had this child, this Time Tot, she would be a mother, and someone would be looking to her for care, for love, for motherhood.

Could she do this? Did she want to do this? What would the Doctor want? She had to get answers.

She finally made her way into her bathroom and looked in the mirror. Her face was pale, but that was normal. Even after the regenerations, she still had some of her parent's genetics affecting her. Her green eyes held many emotions, but the one that stood out the most was hope. A hope for a future that she never thought possible and never knew that she would want. Her golden brown curls stood out from her head at all angels and fell just above her shoulders. At the surface, she looked her usual self. But she knew that she was different now.

River looked down toward the white tile sink counter and spotted the pregnancy test on the edge, displaying in bold print: "POSITIVE: 12 weeks". She couldn't believe that it had taken her this long to pick up on the symptoms such as nausea, tiredness, and a slight four-pound weight gain.

She moved away from the sink until she could view almost all of herself in the bathroom mirror on the dark purple painted wall. She then slowly pulled up her white button up cotton shirt and examined herself closely. She angled and ogled herself in the mirror, even giving herself a wink, because she was of course River Song and she knew how she looked. She did love her body. Then she noticed it, a small, very small, curve around the edge of her stomach. Proof, more proof that the test, than the missed periods, than the usual symptoms of nausea and hormones. She could physically see that she was indeed carrying the Doctor's child and in that instant, all of her questions about herself went away. A switch flipped in her brain and her heart. She wanted this child. She knew it in every fiber of her being. She had something she had long thought was never meant for her. All the pain of having to deal with the fact that she'd never be able to have a child and then see her mother go though the same pain was almost unbearable, but now things were different.

She was going to be a mother.

A single wave of tears came to her eyes as she took in her decision. River wiped them away before they could fall down her face. She wasn't usually one for tears and this was happy moment. She saw herself smile in the mirror.

Now all she had to do was tell the Doctor. What would her floppy haired, twelve year old faced, ageless god think of when he heard the news? She knew that her husband wouldn't ever cast her aside. He loved her, he had proven that to her time and time again, but she didn't know if he would want this. River knew that her husband was lonely a lot of the time and that a child would change that immensely, especially since it would have attributes of the Time Lords, but with his lifestyle, would he be willing to be a bit more domesticated? She had to consider the fact that she would forever be changing his life as well as hers. She couldn't be selfish. Neither one of them could. There was someone more important now than both of them.

River took one last glance in the bathroom mirror as she pulled her shirt down over the very small curve and put her hand on top of it. She couldn't tell if she could actually feel the curve or if she was just so hyper aware of it now that she knew it existed.

River inhaled slowly and then exhaled.

"It's time to tell you father," River said out loud softy, partly to her child, and partly to herself to give her courage.

She then left the bathroom and walked into her bedroom. The walls were the color of the Tardis, an idea she had adopted from Amy's childhood bedroom. The furniture was a dark cherry wood. And the bedspread was a varying pattern of silver and grey. Just looking at the bed made the archeology professor reminisce of all the times she and the Doctor had fallen into it together, sometimes for comfort, sometimes for relaxation, and other times simply out of lust and love. It was hard to distinguish those two emotions with her husband. Lust and love, she couldn't have one without the other when it came to the Doctor. No wonder she was in the condition she was in now.

River then sat down on the edge of her bed and opened the top drawer of the nightstand. She took out the piece of technology she was looking for, her Time Vortex Manipulator, a wonderful donation from the most known Time Agent in history, the one and only Captain Jack Harkness. As she strapped on the black time technology to her wrist, she noticed something else flashing in the drawer. She picked up the piece of paper, which kept showing the same message over an over again.

'River, I need your help. Come to the Tardis as soon as you can. Please. It's an emergency. – Your Husband'. After that were the coordinates to where he and the Tardis were.

River chuckled to herself as she tossed the piece of psychic paper back into the drawer and closed it. Even in a crisis, the Doctor still had the time to send out a mental note and even be polite in it. He was odd but goofy that way, and she just loved it.

She stood up from the bed and set the coordinates to locate the Tardis on the Vortex Manipulator. Whatever the Doctor needed her for would come first. She would fix his crises like she always did and then, once things would calm down, she'd tell her husband their life changing news. One adventure after another.

River checked once more to make sure the coordinates were exact, closed her eyes, and hit the button that would hurl her through time and space to her awaiting husband. With a flash of blue light and a sound similar to thunder, the world of her blue bedroom on the moon disappeared and for a short few seconds, a mirage of colors swirled around, as she seemed to transport herself through the time vortex itself and then quickly landed in the Tardis, her one true home, and all things considering, her place of origin.

She kept her eyes shut for a few brief seconds as she collected herself. One hand automatically went to her stomach. She had not suffered terrible nausea or morning sickness yet through the beginning months of her pregnancy, but this most recent trip via the Vortex Manipulator certainly did a number on her stomach. She gently shook her head, lowered her hand to her side, opened her eyes, and started her usual greeting for the love of her life.

"Hello Sweetie…" The familiar phrase died on her bold red lips though as she took in the scene in the Tardis console room before her. The usual, orange-y colorful Tardis was all red and the cloister bell was chiming. The Doctor was looking frazzled as he ran around the console trying to fix whatever was going wrong. His brown hair was flying in different directions and his limbs were even more exaggerated than usual. His tweed jacket whipped around his fit frame like a tornado. He didn't even notice that River had arrived until she had walked up next him and touched his arm.

Suddenly the Tardis shook, and rocked back and forth violently. River gripped the Doctor's arm tightly, trying to keep her balance. Deep within her mind, River could feel the Tardis reaching out to her, looking for comfort and help. Poor old girl.

"River!" He exclaimed with a mix of relief, happiness, and love as he took in her presence. He quickly hugged her and kissed her on the cheek.

"Doctor?" She looked at him expectantly. She couldn't help herself from smiling, even though their seemed to be trouble. Their life was always exciting. Always unexpected.

"I need you to help me pilot the Tardis, River. Usually I can fly her by myself quite easily, but you know that she is actually meant to have a total of six pilots. Well, I thought between the two of us we can accomplish anything. I mean, I've been piloting her for practically forever and you town gals seem to get along very well…since you had such a significant…uh…start of life…with her…and she taught you how to fly her…and then I gave you even more lessons. Better lessons," he rambled on as he continued to fly around the console, pulling levers, twisting handles, and once in awhile looking at the scanner above his head.

The Tardis continued to shake, as if it seemed to be bouncing off of stuff, or smashing into something. They hit another object and it sent the Doctor flying backwards and almost over the silver railing of the console ledge and sent River to her knees as she awkwardly hung on to the console with one hand and held her stomach with the other. The latter movement happened automatically. She was already adjusting to her condition so easily she didn't even think of it as odd. It felt right to want to protect it, their child.

The Tardis kept on running into whatever objects were outside. She always teased her husband for his driving skills, but this the worst she has ever experienced. He was even asking for help. There must be an issue.

"Doctor!" River yelled over the crashing sounds outside of the blue box and the clanging of the cloister bell. "What is happening?!"

The Doctor sprung back towards the console and yanked a green stabilizer and then twisted a blue nob.

"Well, I was just minding my own business in the time vortex when I decided to visit a couple of planets! I gravitated out of the vortex and was suddenly caught in this onslaught and I haven't been able to escape!" His grey-ish eyes were wide with the thrill of adventure, danger, and the unknown.

"Escape out of what Sweetie?" River asked tentatively. Her face scrunched up as the Tardis was hit with another wave of whatever was causing them turmoil. She gripped the console tighter.

"This!" He yelled as he swung the scanner over to her side of the console so she could see what they were facing.

"Oh…"

On the screen, thousands upon thousands of sparkling space rocks were hurtling themselves towards the Tardis, knocking the time traveling blue box all around. It was very similar to a game of pin ball. The rocks were the machine. The Tardis was the ball.

"Yep," The Doctor announced excitedly while clapping his hands together as if he was proud of the situation he had gotten them into. "We are right in the heart of a meteor shower!"

River's eyes narrowed as she looked at the scanner and continued bracing for impact as rock after rock scraped against the Tardis.

"Well," River said as her eyes flickered down to her stomach and then back to avalanche of space rocks. "Isn't this a smashing start?" The Doctor took her hand in his own and smiled at her. She smiled back at him and raised an eyebrow as if to ask 'what's next?'.

The Doctor chuckled happily and then looked back to the screen. Coming right at them was a space rock the size of ten Tadis' and there seemed to be no way to avoid it. The Doctor squeezed her hand.

"Geronimo!" He cheered gleefully as he started to move around the console again.

"Geronimo," River agreed as she gazed down the giant rock with mix of excitement, adrenaline, glee, and anxiety. This was how her life always was and even with this new addition coming into, she wouldn't trade this kind of excitement for anything, especially if it was along side her husband.

XXXXXXX

Thank you all for reading the first chapter of "Life Unexpected". It would be greatly appreciated for you to comment, favorite, and follow. If you have any issues, advice on how to make this story better, or what you would like to see in later chapters, then feel free to let me know. Thanks for going on this journey with me!


	2. Flying and Falling

Life Unexpected Chapter 2:

"Flying and Falling"

River Song eyed the scanner in front of her on the console as she watched the giant meteor hurl closer and closer and towards the Tardis. She then looked over to her husband. The Doctor was still moving around the rest of the console, pulling nobs, twisting wheels, and throwing levers. His grey eyes seemed to not be focusing on anything in particular. It was as if his mind was ten steps ahead and his body was slowly trying to catch up. Or maybe he simply just didn't know what to do? River hoped it was the first.

"Maybe if we just keep flying through it we'll end up at the start of it and be out…no… no… no…We can just ride out the meteor shower and eventually we'll be free…I could try manually maneuvering the old girl…um…Maybe just teleporting…Would she be up for that…I…I…Ahhhhh!" The Doctor's rambling train of thought was cut off in a yell as three space rocks slammed into Tardis at the same moment. The whole space box shook, the lights flickered, and the Tardis made a noise that could only be similar to a groan of being in pain.

Suddenly, in her mind, just at the very edge of thought, River heard something…or more appropriately…felt something. It was the Tardis was reaching out to her and the Doctor, begging them for help, asking to get out of this painful mess.

"I know old girl. I'm sorry," The Doctor said breathlessly as he stopped moving around the console. He dipped his head downward, letting his brown hair fall into face and he closed his eyes as he gently stroked the cold metal of the center of the ship. "I'm sorry that this is causing you discomfort. I'm just not sure what to yet, but I will figure something out…always do."

River watched her husband closely as she stood firm footed and braced against her section of console, waiting for more meteors to come flying into them. She looked at the screen once more. The giant ten Tardis sized rock was getting closer and they were running out space and time to avoid it. The Doctor wasn't doing anything and that shocked her. His head was still bowed towards the console with his eyes shut.

"Doctor! We need to do something. Now!"

No response. The old Time Lord kept his eyes closed. Small wrinkles appeared on his forehead as he scrunched up his face in what seemed like concentration. It was a rather odd look on the Doctor.

"Doctor!" River yelled once more. If he had been looking at her, he would have been facing a furious face. Her green eyes blazed with a combination of distress, anticipation, and exasperation. Her mouth was drawn into a thin line and her breaths were shallow. She either needed to be told what to do next or she would have to figure something out on her own, which she usually did, and it usually ended up working pretty damn well. Sometimes they survived through his plans, other times her, but at the moment, it looked like she would have to be the one taking charge.

"Sweetie," She called in steady voice. She was giving him one more chance.

"I've heard you River. I'm thinking," He replied evenly and quietly. She waited for more, but he didn't say anything else. Usually his plans just came to him and he winged it. But it wasn't happening as fast as she would have liked. The Tardis shook once more, this time violently enough to knock River down to her hands and knees and sending the Doctor down to the floor on his butt. He looked so surprised and wide-eyed. If this had been any other situation, River would have been laughing at him and his face.

But now wasn't the time for laughter. It was the time for action. If the Doctor wasn't thinking fast enough, then she would have to just do it herself.

River quickly hoisted herself up, took a deep breath, steadied herself, and walked around the console until she saw the switch she was looking for. It was silver, simple, with a keypad next to it. She would simply teleport them out of this damned meteor shower and into the Time Vortex. The Doctor had mentioned it as a possible idea just a few moments before.

She typed in some coordinates quickly, made sure that the brakes were not on, and flipped the silver switch.

She could feel the Tardis start to dematerialize, but then it just stopped. The old girl had stayed put, in the middle of the raging meteor shower.

River looked at the switch with a little confusion as her mouth slightly fell open. She couldn't understand why they hadn't gone into the Time Vortex. The Doctor was still remaining on the floor, but was now focusing his attention on the scanner and the ever-increasing in proximity space rock. River felt at a momentary loss. Was this going to be the end of them? She hadn't even gotten a chance to tell the Doctor her good news.

A shout of glee then rang through the Tardis, causing River to jump a bit.

"Ah Ha!" Exclaimed the Doctor suddenly as he shot up from the ground and launched forward toward the console with a wild grin that lit up his eyes and usually made River remark to him as looking like a twelve year old. She loved that grin. "Finally figured out a plan. Now I need you to help me with it River."

She smiled and felt some hope return.

"Took you long enough to figure something out. You must be getting old," She gently teased. "So, what do you need me to do Sweetie?"

At the age comment, he held his tongue, but gave her some serious side eye and a half smile. She smiled back sweetly and innocently.

"Professor Song, I need you to go over a few feet to your left around the console until you see the yellow lever. That is for increasing the speed of the Tardis. When I tell you to do so, pull it as quickly as you can and keep it down. We are going to need a lot of speed," He said calmly. River moved around the base until she found the lever he had described. She grabbed onto it and felt the cool metal. She looked around the center of the console as best she could to get a glimpse of her husband.

"Ok. Found it, but now what are you going to do?"

"I", he replied with a cheeky grin, "am going to manually fly the Tardis straight towards that giant rock that is heading straight for us and with you giving us a burst of speed at the right moment and with my genius navigational skills, I think we shall be able to propel ourselves out of this shower, since the old girl doesn't seem to want to transport us. Clever thinking by the way River, trying to transport us."

River looked slightly alarmed, not at the compliment he gave her, but at his over all plan.

"You…are manually going to fly us…fly the Tardis in the middle of this storm?" She asked with her eyebrows raised high.

"Yes, got a problem with that wife?"

"Yes, yes I do!" She countered. "You'll crash us. Your driving skills are on par with Amy's." He frowned at that and a shadow seemed to creep over his face, and she knew it wasn't because of the insult. It was the name she had mentioned.

"Sorry," River hastily said, eyes looking downward for a few seconds as she too fought off emotions that shouldn't have been dealt with at that time. Names are funny, how they affect one so. The Doctor let out a slightly shaky breath and ran his fingers through his floppy brown hair.

"It's alright….but I will say this, I am better at driving than that," He spoke solemnly with a small frown. Then he quickly regained his composure and smiled over at River. "Also, you might want to find something to hang onto." River's eyes sparkled at that comment.

And with that, the Doctor then focused in on the scanner, caught hold of a black nob that resembled something of a joystick and actually starting directing the direction the Tardis was flying.

Instead of being pushed around in the meteor shower, they were flying through it, against it. The Doctor may have better driving skills than his former friend and companion, but he was still the Doctor and that caused him to hit a few bumps along the path towards the giant meteor. Hitting the rocks in this order felt even worse to River as she swayed back and forth, trying to keep balance against the obstacles the blue box was grinding against. She wondered if there would be any blue paint left on her after this ordeal.

The Doctor swerved the box back and forth, hurtling it closer and closer towards its destination. His goofy grin was at its maximum and he felt excited. This was what he loved, the chaos, the adrenaline, the thrill of life and death adventure with someone by his side. And to have his wife by his side made it all the better.

They were now feet away from crashing into the major meteor.

"Now River! Hit the speed! As fast as you can make her go!" The Doctor ordered. River obliged as she pulled down the yellow lever as quickly as she could and held it tight. In the exact moment, the Doctor on the opposite side of the console jammed the joystick nob upward and held it.

"Geronimo," He whispered.

Miraculously, the Tardis quicly moved up and around the meteor. The blue box followed the curve of the space rock, paralleling around its curve and once the Tardis flew up the to top, the Doctor's previous statement happened. By some repelling force, some sort of Time Lord trick, or just brilliant luck, or maybe all three, the Tardis was propelled up and out of the meteor shower.

"Alright River, you can stop increasing the speed. We can just let the Tardis drift for a few moments. There is a planet below us that just got quite a show from that meteor shower and it might be fun to go down there later and view it from a safe and proper distance," The Doctor said as he let go of the joystick as took a step back from the console and inhaled and exhaled slowly. He straitened his bowtie and started to move towards his wife.

River let go of the lever she was holding and exhaled. A smile of relief came upon her face and made her eyes light up. Well, at least the life and death crisis was avoided…for now. With the Doctor, they could repeat scenarios like this five or more times in one day, with his luck. She looked over to her right where the Doctor was now standing with a small smile on his face and his arms wide open.

She quickly closed the distance between them and fell into a warm hug from her favorite time traveling man. This version of the Doctor always loved hugs.

"Hello Sweetie," River said quietly after she gave the Doctor a chaste and simple kiss. More exhilarating ways of expressing her pleasure of seeing the Doctor would happen later that night. Oh she had plans, but only after she told him her news and they were finished with that day's adventure. As River pulled slightly away after their kiss, the Doctor looked a little confused. Usually his wife was bit more thorough with her 'hello's'. All she did to give him an answer was huskily say, "Later", and add a wink as she pulled stepped away, giving him a few feet between them.

He closed the space between them once more and wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into him until their foreheads were together and grey eyes met dazzling green. She twisted her hands behind his neck. It had only been a few weeks since the Doctor had last seen River, but to him, she looked even more beautiful than he had remembered. He would even go as far as describing her as glowing. He was just drawn to her, all of her.

"River…you always know how tease…and torture…," he slightly growled. His grey eyes were almost pleading. He definitely wanted a grander 'hello' from his wife.

Even though he was over a thousand years old and was very easy to blush, with River, romantics and relationships were becoming more normal, more understandable, more wanted. He of course was still his goofy somewhat innocent naive self, but he was the Doctor and the Doctor always held multiple sides to his personality. The side of loving and devoted husband was a side that he didn't mind portraying as much now, because he felt like his words and actions were truly matching up with his feelings. He and River were finally in a place where they almost seemed linear (especially these last few months), where there were hardly any spoilers hanging over their heads. They could truly be with one another and it was practically perfect for the Doctor. Ever since Amy and Rory…left, he felt a heart wrenching void in his life, but then River would show up just frequently enough to keep him occupied (in more ways than one) and he knew that he never had to explain his past, or his last two companions, or his romantic relationship status. She knew, she always knew. She was his confidant, practically his equal, and most importantly, his wife. The Doctor would always be grateful for River's strong and fearless personality, her interest and knowledge in history and science and space, her playful attitude, her impeccable shooting prowess, and most of all, her never wavering love and devotion towards him.

The Doctor seemed lost in a train of thought as he held River close to him and River didn't protest. Moments like this between them were rare. Of course they enjoyed nights of sex that would make even the wilder person blush, in the moment kisses that took their breath away, fun flirtations, and endless bonding moments while they ran towards danger, space, history, and adventure. But simple moments of just being with each other, holding each other in peace and silence, those moments were rare.

And as if on cue that they were in a moment of peace, it was instantly shattered when the Tardis gave one giant shake and fell out of its drifting orbiting it had been on.

River and the Doctor broke apart and stared at one another in similar confusion. The Tardis shuddered once more and they instantly felt a sort of pressure closing in around the Tardis.

River grabbed ahold of one of the silver railings on the level of the Tardis that she was standing on, trying to steady herself as the Tardis started rocking back and forth. The Doctor flew towards the console and yanked the scanner close to him while also studying smaller screens on the console and adjusted various levers, wheels, and nobs.

The lights flickered in the blue box, its shaking intensified, and the pressure around it seemed to be increasing, and the sensation of falling grew greater.

"Doctor! What the bloody hell is happening now? I thought we were out of that damned meteor shower?!" River shouted. She was beyond frustrated with being in a tossing and turning Tardis.

"We are out of the meteor shower! What we are experiencing now River, is the gravity of the planet below us that we were orbiting. Apparently we flew too close and since the Tardis was simply drifting, the planet's gravity caught it and is now being swiftly pulled down to the surface." His voice was now two octaves higher than it usually was. It was the voice he reserved for when he was under pressure and frazzled. Apparently, he kept calmer during the meteor shower than he was during this free fall.

Then the Tardis went partially dark. About half of the lights went out and the speed at which they were falling increased. River felt herself feel almost weightless as her body adjusted to being pulled downwards. She clung to the railing even more and she noticed the Doctor gripping the console in a similar fashion. She knew her curly hair must be flying out at obscene angels during this time.

"Are we going to be able to get out of this Doctor?" River questioned over the sound of the shaking Tardis.

"I…uh…don't think so River," The Doctor replied soberly as the Tardis grew darker. More lights were beginning to turn off. The usual hum of the Tardis was also disappearing. "It seems as if the Tardis is powering down!"

"She's dying?!"

"No! No. Just…turning off. It's like someone or something flipped a switch on her. And I can't get her to turn back on. I'm losing control. I can try steering her a bit, but I can't pull us out the planet's gravity or transport us. We keep descending towards the planet."

The Doctor confirmed the situation by looking at the scanner, which was starting to lose its focus. He studied the planet as quickly as could and noticed above its surface that there was a bit of land sectioned off and was colored and overcast with a sparkling blue field of light. He knew that they would need help to get the Tardis going again and if that was civilization, then he was going to use the last remaining control over the Tardis to make sure to land them in the sparkling blue section of the planet.

The last few remaining light started diming and right before the interior of the Tardis went completely dark, the Doctor managed to angle them towards the blue. He quickly called out to River to hang on tight as it went pitch black inside the console room and the Tardis hit the air space of planet and truly started free falling through the sky towards the ground below it.

The Doctor and River's screams mingle together in the dark and River could honestly believe that this moment would be categorized in her top ten most terrifying moments. Free falling in a pitch-black room of a space box with no control was something she never imagined would happen. She didn't know what was up or down. All that she was sure of was the cold metallic railing that she was clinging to and hanging on to for dear life.

And then soon enough, the Tardis finally hit the surface of the planet with a loud crash. River and the Doctor were slammed against the surface of the floor of the console section of the Tardis console room and it rattled them both for a minute as they adjusted to the dark stillness around them. River gingerly let go of the railing, even though she couldn't see it or anything for that matter, and sat down on the floor, and put her hand to her stomach. Her fingers brushed against the ever so slight curve that was forming. She felt pain in her hands from gripping the railing and pain in her legs from hit the Tardis floor, but she felt nothing in her abdomen or anywhere else, so she had to trust that the baby was unharmed. She took a few deep breaths and felt more assured when nothing changed.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder and while still sitting on the floor, she turned around. The Doctor was crouching next to her in the ground. She could barley make him out in the inky darkness of the room. By some miracle, there was a smatter of light coming from the core of the Tardis.

River felt the Doctor's hands fumble against her own and once he found them, he gripped them and gave them a reassuring squeeze.

"River, are you alright?" The Doctor asked breathlessly. He sounded worried.

"I think so. I'm a tad sore, but I think I'm alright," River replied in a tired voice, yet slightly shaky voice. This visit to the Tardis was not what she had wished when had answered his call for help. She would normally brush her own injuries off, but in the back of her mind was the simple fact that she had to focus on more than her life now. But, now wasn't the time to bring it up. "Are you alright, my love?"

"Yes…I think so…a bit sore as well, but, since I'm a Time Lord, I can handle injuries better than most," he said as he guided them both to standing position. "Well, now that we have landed, and I believe are no longer moving, why don't we leave this dark room, let the old girl try to repair herself, and see just where we have landed? What do you say Professor Song?"

She could hear the smile and interest in his voice. He could never resist exploring something new. And for that matter, neither could she. Adventure called both their names.

"You've got the right idea honey," she agreed.

The Doctor then gingerly led his wife down the steps and towards the doors of Tardis and slowly opened the door to the unknown outside. Both of them quickly shielded their eyes with their hands as they stepped out of the blue box. The contrast from the dark console room to the sunny world outside was great.

Once they had made their way out and had acclimated to the new environment, the Tardis doors shut automatically. The Doctor spun around quickly and tried to open them once more, but found them locked. He pulled out his key and found that it wouldn't turn and then took out his sonic screwdriver and came to the terrible realization that even the screwdriver wouldn't work. It wouldn't even turn on. It was completely dead. All of his technology wouldn't turn on and wouldn't work. He and his wife were stranded in a place that he didn't even know the time or name of.

He groaned and flailed about for minute. Why did things have to be so frustrating? It was then that he turned away from the Tardis and really examined his surroundings, like how River was already doing.

At least if they were stranded, they were stranded in a beautiful place. The Tardis had crashed on a planet that closely resembled a tropical jungle. There was bright and vivid green vegetation everywhere. The trees were a light brown smooth bark that rose at least 300 feet into the sky and there were varying plants, flowers, bushes, and grasses of all types, heights and sizes.

"It's like a tropical paradise," River stated with a bit of awe as she wander around the space near the Tardis. "A bloody hot tropical paradise, but a paradise none the less. Feels like it's at least 100 degrees Fahrenheit." She was thankful that she was wearing a lightweight white button up shirt. Her black pants were a little uncomfortable, but she would managed. She also pitied the Doctor at the moment, who was looking quite warm in his tweed jack and other multiple layers. She might have to remove a few of those later.

"Well, River, now that we are here, landed, and seemingly stranded, let's do what we do best…explore!" The Doctor said as he started walking off in a direction away from the Tardis.

"Yes, let's," River agreed with a smile. This may not have been in her plans for the day, but she knew they would make the best of it. There was undiscovered land to search, answers to gather, and of course, fun to be had. Even if they were running for their lives, it always came with a bit of fun.

"We'll be back old girl," he called back to Tardis. "Just going to do a bit of exploring. Hopefully you'll turn back on soon. If not, then we'll have to search out some help for you."

The two of them then wandered through the jungle like scenery for about fifteen minutes in comfortable silence. With no equipment to use to study the nature, they had to rely on their natural senses. It was quite beautiful and seemed like a relatively harmless place. As they walked, they would point out a certain flower or tree, but they never ran across anyone else or any sign of technology.

The Doctor was quite confused about what he had seen before they had crashed. What was that blue force field light?

The sun was starting to dip in the sky behind them as they walked and the Doctor judged that it was probably around 3:00 in the afternoon, by human earth standards anyway. He didn't know what type of hour system this planet was on. Not yet at least.

They walked for five more minutes until they came into a small clearing of sorts. There was about a 20 foot by 20-foot open space where no trees were. It was covered though by the tree canopy above and gave them some shade to relieve themselves with.

They stood a few feet apart and felt a gentle breeze sweep through the trees. River closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. She smelled an overload of various flowers, humidity, and the dirt beneath her feet.

The Doctor who walked over to her while she still had her eyes shut and tapped her on the nose in a playful manner. Even though he seemed very warm and uncomfortable in his layers, he was still excited to be out and about.

"Enjoying our little excursion wife?"

"Very much husband. It's so nice to be on a planet where there is so much vegetation, especially since the last planet you took me to was literally all desert. It was so brown, dull, and lifeless. This, on the other hand is fresh, pretty, and vivid."

"Glad you like it."

It's not what he expected or was hoping for, but it seemed like a decent planet. He just wished that there was a little more action on this latest adventure. The thrill of the meteor shower and falling to planet due to its gravity was wearing off and the Doctor was itching for their next exciting installment. And he could tell that River was feeling the same.

And as if their wishes were heard and granted, a sudden noise over to their left caught their attention.

Both of them turned around and came face to face with about 15 people who seemed to be natives of this green vegetated planet. They were all tall, at least six feet or higher with light blue skin, the color of thistle flowers, green eyes, and silver hair. They also seemed very built, strong like athletes with muscle. It was then that the Doctor and River noticed that all of the natives had bows and arrows pointed at them.

River slowly maneuvered herself closer to the Doctor and intertwined their hands. They were effectively surrounded and unarmed on a strange planet that they knew nothing about with no access to the Tardis or means of escape. Just a normal day in the life of the Doctor and River Song, and they wouldn't have it any other way.


	3. Run

Life Unexpected Chapter 3:

"Run!"

The Doctor and River Song stood hand in hand motionless in the small clearing of the tropical jungle on an unknown planet. Surrounding them were about fifteen humanoid life forms who seemed to be native to this planet. They were tall, well built, with light blue skin, green eyes, silver hair, various pieces of cloth covering their forms, and very sharp arrows pointed at the two time travelers they had just run across.

The Doctor eyed all of the natives. They didn't look like they were in the mood to talk, but he had to be hopeful. They weren't shooting yet. Reasoning was always the Doctor's strong suit. River's on the other hand was planning out an attack strategy. Her gun was at her side, in its holster and she could easily pull it out, but at the moment, her gun hand was enveloped in her husband's firm grasp.

The Doctor could feel River's hand muscles tensing and twitching. He knew that she wanted her gun firmly in her grasp, but he knew that it might give the wrong conclusion to the people before them.

"No…wait…," The Doctor told her in a barely audible whisper while keeping a firm hold on her hand. She closed her greens eyes for a moment in frustration. Her mouth formed a thin line. She suck in air through her nose and the exhaled as she opened her eyes. She had to keep herself in check. No matter how much she wanted to fight, to protect herself, she had to keep those impulses under control.

Not every encounter was life threatening. Not every encounter was the Silence.

She had to believe in the Doctor's ideals of communication first, running second, and guns last.

She gave the Doctor's hand a good squeeze, reassuring him of her non-threatening actions while also signaling for him to take over the situation. He was of the course the better negotiator out of the two of them. She was the fighter.

The Doctor then left go of River's hand and slowly brought both of his hands up to his chest in a surrendering sort of position. He then cautiously stepped forward, towards the group of blue and silver warrior looking aliens. He hoped he looked innocent and non threatening. Usually this twelve-year-old face did the trick.

He took a deep breath, exhaled, blinked, and then spoke.

"Ok, um…hello," He started. "I'm the Doctor. This is River. We accidentally landed here when my Tardis escaped out of a meteor shower. You might have seen it. Tons of space rocks in the sky all crashing about with my Tardis, big blue box, flying around in the middle of it? Eh…anyways. We don't want to cause you any harm."

After he finished speaking, he looked back to River and she slightly nodded her head in approval at his introduction. He also noticed at this time that the humidity of this planet was doing wondrous things to River's already naturally curly hair. He smiled to himself. It was so unique that it could rival the brilliantness of his former body's sticky up hairdo, as Wilfred had once called it. He then quickly chided himself for getting distracted at a time like this and focused back on the natives before him.

They hadn't made a move since they first locked onto himself and River. They were still, like statues, waiting to pounce. Arrows were waiting to be released. As the Doctor examined them more closely, he noticed that their bodies weren't all just light blue. They had patterns of small silver spots covering most of their exposed skin. As the sunlight fell through the tropical jungle and hit their bodies, the silver spots seemed to reflect the sunlight, just like their hair. All in all, besides wielding sharp arrows, they were quite pretty to look at. They truly matched the beauty of this planet's wildlife.

Both River and the Doctor waited for the native aliens to respond. They just continued to hold their positions.

"Look, I'm sorry if we startled you. Please, we mean no harm. We are just stranded here at the moment. All we would like to do is talk with you and figure a way off this lovely planet of yours. What do you say?" The Doctor asked the group before him, giving them a small crooked smile.

The aliens' green eye's narrowed and they started to inch closer and closer to the two time travelers with the arrows still on point. River and the Doctor also started gradually gravitating closer to one another. This was not the reaction they were hoping for.

"Please! We don't want to fight!" The Doctor yelled out, starting to grow frustrated. His grey old eyes started scanning all around them. Out of the corners of his eyes, he could see more blue figures hiding in the deeper green vegetation. They were increasing their numbers, and now River and the Doctor were really at a disadvantage. Why weren't they responding to his statements?! The blue warriors kept creeping forward, slowly, and deliberately.

"Please! Talk!" He all but begged out loud. He had now moved close enough to River to be able to grab her hand once more, and unfortunately for her, it was her gun hand. Now they were in the same predicament they had started with, but it felt like they were much more danger than before.

Then suddenly, one of the natives spoke.

But neither River nor the Doctor understood it.

And then the Doctor had the sinking feeling of understanding of why he couldn't understand them.

The native closest to them spoke one more, but nothing registered in either one of their brains as to what they were being told. The language of these aliens almost sounded like humming. There was barely anything syllabic to what they were hearing.

"Doctor, I can't understand what they are saying. Can you?" River asked. He didn't look at her, but he could hear a hint of trepidation in her voice. River was unusually smart, brilliant even. He could bet that she was going through all of her old lessons in her head, trying to match this language to one that she had heard of in her past.

"No River, I can't," he responded steadily, quietly. His eyes bored down on the blue natives with arrows and he felt his face transform into the face of what people referred to as 'The Oncoming Storm'. "River can you guess why we aren't understanding them, and why they aren't apparently understanding us?"

River didn't respond. She just kept on watching the alien's numbers increase around them. This was getting bad. This was getting dangerous. They were far away from the Tardis, in a deep, bloody hot jungle, with only one gun. Sure, River was a fantastic shot, probably one of the best in the whole universe, but they were only two people versus what now looked like one hundred native aliens.

"We can't understand each other River, because the Tardis isn't working at the moment. All technology seems to be shut off; even my Sonic Screwdriver won't turn on. And since the Tardis is off, that means its translation matrix is off and not functioning. So, all forms of communication between them and us is what we have before us now, words that won't reach each other's ears. Words that for once, won't win the wars. Oh, and if you are wondering why we are still able to understand one another River, it is because obviously we are speaking English to one another. English is your native language and most of my past companions native language. It's basically my default language when speaking, since my native language is never used anymore. It's funny, I never imagined that I would become so connected to humans that eventually, I would just fall back on one of their world's most popular languages," he babbled on.

The Doctor still held River's hand. The two moved closer to one another until they were practically huddled toegther. The Doctor then slowly started guiding both of them backwards, away from the horde of hunters.

With all of the aliens encircling them, the temperature of the jungle seemed to skyrocket. The humidity was almost overpowering and suffocating. Both the Doctor and River felt drained with each breath they sucked into their lungs. Perspiration ran down both of their worried faces.

"What should we do Doctor?" River asked, not bothering to look him. She kept her eyes forward. So did he, when he should have been looking at where he was stepping backwards. If the Doctor had taken in his surroundings a bit more, he would have noticed the medium sized branch right behind his feet on the jungle floor.

Before he could respond to River's question, the Doctor's feet got tripped up in the branch. He fell backwards, straight onto his butt, similar to his previous fall in the Tardis. River kept her balance and reached down to help her husband up. He was about to reach for hand, when suddenly an arrow zinged right between their fingers, not hitting either one of them, but definitely sending a message.

River and the Doctor looked away from each other and up towards the natives. The one closest to them had just released an arrow from his bow. His expression was hard, determined. He looked like their leader.

The Doctor stood up and brushed himself off. River straightened and exhaled. Everything felt frozen for a moment in that sun filled vegetated space. Just then, an arrow flew at River's head and she moved just quickly enough that it avoided her, barely. A few strands of her golden brown curls were caught by the tip of the arrow, though.

Then, more arrows started flying in their direction. Both the Doctor and River hit the ground, trying to duck and dodge. The dirt on the jungle's floor was cooler than the rest of its surroundings, but it still felt warmer than normal dirt. It was warm, soft, and gave them some cushioning as they clambered away from the alien hunters and their arrows. The mass of blue natives were descending upon them, circling the wagons so to speak.

The Doctor looked up from the ground and saw a small space where their hunters had not covered yet.

Hoisting himself up with the great speed, he grabbed River's hand in own, dragged her up to her feet, and lunged forward to the available space in the jungle, clear of angry blue natives and arrows.

"RUN!" The Doctor demanded. He still held a tight hold on River and raced away from that small clearing as fast as he could.

River didn't even have time to argue. She was just being pulled along behind him by the hand. They ran at full speed, never looking back towards the hunters that they knew were hot on their heels. They could see arrows whizzing past them, hitting trees and bushes. They zigzagged through the jungle, trying not to give the natives a clear view or angle of them.

The Doctor and River soon realized that with each step, they were further distancing themselves from the Tardis. They were running further and further away from safety.

Eventually, River matched the Doctor's pace, so instead of being dragged behind him, she was running along side him, like she should be, hand in hand, escaping danger around every corner, being thankful for every breath they were taking, and of course, enjoying the thrill of escaping death once again along side the man she loved.

The two time travellers kept on running. They barreled though bushes; pushed past the various species of low hanging branches, weaved around thick brown tree trunks, tripped over vines, pounded the soft dirt beneath their feet, and simply blazed through the tropical jungle like setting around them. Hand in hand they ran. Panting, almost out of breath. Sweat trickled down their backs, their faces, and their arms. Their clothes, stained with spots of dirt and foliage, stuck to their skin. Hair and limbs flew out in all directions from both parties as they battled the landscape, the sea of flying arrows, and the angry alien natives.

They ran for five minutes, then ten, and then fifteen. Adrenaline flowed through both of them; making them cover more ground than they thought was possible. Their legs were starting to burn and it was more difficult to take air in. Usually, they both could run far longer, but the humidity and terrain of this planet was wearing them down, and not to mention, River was starting to feel a tad nauseous. But still, they pushed forward, just barely out of the grasp of the blue hunters on their trail.

Even though River was starting to feel pretty miserable, she had to laugh inwardly to herself. While in this type of situation, she realized that two specific emotions were dominating: fear and pleasure. She was in fear because death was close by and pleasure in being able to escape it. Then she realized that she was feeling pleasure at the fear she was experiencing and then fearing the pleasure that came from it. The Doctor's past description about her was correct, she was a psychopath.

River shook her head slightly as she tried to push away the thoughts of self-reflection that had just occurred to her. She squeezed the Doctor's hand. No matter how crazy this life seemed, gaining pleasure from these out of this world adventures, she knew that it would never be viewed negatively in the eyes of the people that loved her, in the eyes of the Doctor, because he seemed to gain that same type of crazy high from these adventures.

The two kept on running.

Eventually, both River and the Doctor saw the trees starting to thin ahead of them. The sunlight seemed ten times brighter in that section of the jungle. The light at the end of the tunnel. They both picked up their speed.

They reached the edge of where the trees thinned. The sun was fierce and bright. As their eyes adjusted, both of them slowed down just enough to realized that if they had ran even ten more feet, they would have fallen off of a cliff side at the edge of the jungle and plunged into a deep body of water below. It looked like a lake. A very large lake. The Doctor scanned the surrounding area quickly and he noticed a waterfall located far below across the other side of the giant lake below them. There was also a beach shore along the edge of the lake and more jungle expanded from there. They were really in the middle of nowhere on this planet.

They held on to each other to keep themselves from falling. There was nowhere to run. If they ran back into the jungle, they would be heading straight towards the aliens natives and if they kept moving forward, all that faced them was a long fall into the water and neither one of them knew what was down below.

The sounds of the hunters getting closer grew louder. They made noises that seemed like a mix between humming and whooping. A few arrows came whizzing out of the trees, but they didn't come close enough to injuring the couple.

The Doctor was starting to look a bit panicked and River was growing frustrated with the circumstances. She was now tired of running. It was time to make a stand. Something she enjoyed and did very well. She let go of the Doctor took three steps forward, stood firm footed in front of her man, and pulled out her blaster gun from her side holster.

Suddenly, blue figures started appearing from the edge of the jungle. They had slowed down to a stalking sort of motion. They crept closer, knowing that their prey was cornered. Their bows and arrows were at attention.

A smile crept up on River's face and her eyes flashed with desire to show off her shooting skills. She raised the gun straight out in front of her and her fingers trembled slightly against the trigger, not from nerves, but from anticipation ad excitement. This was what she was good at, what she was trained in. _This_ was River Song.

"Hello Sweetie," River purred softly as she took aim at the closest approaching native hunter, the leader from back at the clearing. Her grin grew bigger and she took another step forward. The natives pulled back on their bows until they were as taught as they could be. They seemed to be waiting for their leader to make the first move, to release the first arrow in this final attack.

The Doctor quickly moved to her side, trying to reason with her. Panic was evident in his voice and on his face. His clenched and unclenched his hands, not quite knowing what to do with them, with River, well, with anything at the moment.

"River! River, no," The Doctor pleaded softly in her ear as he leaned into her, resting a hand on her shoulder. "Don't shoot them. Look, they aren't shooting at us now. Maybe we can reason with them, or at least escape. Just don't kill them. You don't need to needlessly take away life."

River grimaced. She always argued with the Doctor about this issue. Sometimes he was more lenient in her shooting others and sometimes he was straight up against it. Apparently today, he was against it.

"But Sweetie," River murmured softly. "I thought you liked my shooting skills? I thought you enjoyed me being able to act in ways that you normally never would? I thought I was a kickass with a gun?"

She leaned into him slightly from the side. She could feel his warmth breath on neck and cheek. She kept her eyes and gun trained on the main native in front of her.

"I do like your shooting skills River, but right now, this isn't a battle, it's a defense. These aliens are just defending themselves. They can't even properly communicating with us. We have to make the smart decision her. Don't kill them, not if you don't have to. Please."

His voiced was low, soft, and controlled. It was pleading, but River knew that there was more of an order in his tone, rather than a simple request.

And if she though about it, River knew he was right, at least this time. They did just stumble in upon the native's home and. They hadn't searched them out to attack and they weren't attacked after immediately leaving the Tardis. It was just wrong time wrong place. She sighed with defeat and lowered the gun and relaxed her stance. The Doctor gripped her shoulder and gave it squeeze.

"Thank you," He spoke softly. River frowned slightly and nodded.

The natives still held their attack pose, ready to strike. There was nowhere to go. Just then, an idea came to her.

"Doctor, what would happen if I just shot a warning shot up into the sky? It wouldn't hurt them, but it might scare them. I mean look at them, they are using bows and arrows and they don't look like they have technology on them. They look pretty primitive. Maybe we can just scare them away?" River asked hopefully.

The Doctor sighed and River could have sworn she could hear his brain working. He grunted and then agreed.

"I guess it's worth a try. There's nothing much else that we can do at the moment," he said as he carefully looked behind himself to take a peak at the water far below them.

And with that, River quickly raised her blaster gun above her head and pulled the trigger.

Nothing happened.

She tried again, yet still nothing. With annoyance she, lowered her gun arm and shoved it back in its holster. It seemed like nothing was going to work on this stupid bloody jungle planet.

At the movement by River, she did succeed in causing a reaction, though it wasn't what she or the Doctor had hoped for. The Natives inched forward and released their arrows.

They seemed to be flying at them in slow motion.

"River! Quickly, we have to jump! There's no other choice. Nowhere to go but down. We might be safe in the water. Jump now!" The Doctor yelled as he caught ahold of her hand once more. His voice was high pitched.

She wanted to argue against him. She didn't know how safe it was for her risk a jump that far. It could cause her problems, problems that she knew the Doctor was not ready for at the moment.

But before she could say anything, twist out of his grasp, or even try to run, she felt his fingers grip around her wrist, pulling her backwards, and then she realized that she was falling through thin air. Arrows were flying above her, inches away from her face. The natives were no longer in her range of sight. Above her was the bright sun lit sky. Beside her was the Doctor, with a firm hold on her. Around her was air. Below her was the dark water.

River closed her eyes, held onto her husband, and braced herself for the cold impact.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Thank you all for reading the third chapter of "Life Unexpected". It would be greatly appreciated for you to comment, favorite, and follow. If you have any issues, advice on how to make this story better, or what you would like to see in later chapters, then feel free to let me know. Sorry about not having a thank you at the end of the second chapter. I forgot to add it in. And if any of you are wondering, this story is being organized and thought out. I have the first 10 chapter completely structured and I have other key plot points organized. This story does have a path and I'm excited and thankful for you everyone who joins me on it. Thank you for reading and I hope that you are looking forward to more. See you at the next chapter!


	4. River in Moonlight

Life Unexpected Chapter 4:

"River In Moonlight"

Water. Water everywhere. Water filled all of Professor River Song's senses. She was completely submerged in the cold dark lake. Her curls floated around her head and she felt water beginning to pool into her shoes, starting to weigh her down. She was sinking further and further down to the bottom of the lake that she was in.

Why was she in water, she questioned to herself as she began to feel discomfort in her lungs and chest due to lack of oxygen, and then she remembered as another hand gripped her own and started pulling her upwards towards the surface, towards where some light seemed to be shining.

The Doctor and River had crashed the Tardis on an unknown jungle planet and had accidentally angered its natives, tall blue and silver warriors with bows and arrows, and then suddenly they were running through the lush green jungle, hand in hand, dodging arrows and escaping the angry planet's inhabitants. They had run until they had reached a cliff edge. River had wanted to make a stand, but the Doctor had other plans. He had grabbed ahold of her and had flung both of them off the cliff side and into the lake below.

Everything came back to River as she moved towards the surface, half swimming and half being pulled upwards by the Doctor. She kicked her legs fiercely and used her free arm to perform half of a breaststroke. She held onto the Doctor's hand tightly, not wanting to drift away from him. He was her anchor under all of this water, but instead of dragging her down, he was pulling her up. She hated water, absolutely hated it. She might even admit that she was a bit afraid of it. Ever since she was forced into that horrible space suit against her will and was positioned under Lake Silencio to murder the Doctor, she could barely stand to look at big bodies of water, let alone go into them. Water was not her friend. It was a trap, a cage. A hiding place where she was forced to wait to commit the one act that she had dreaded all her life. And once that act had been completed she was forced to take cover in it due to the barrage of bullets being sent in her direction from an older version of her self. She really hated water.

Just as River was trying to focus on something other than her horrid past with water and murders, she and the Doctor reached the surface of the lake that they had fallen into. Their heads burst through the skin of the lake, causing ripples to form all around. They both sputtered and coughed, thankful for being able to take air in again. They treaded in place for a few seconds, still holding hands, while taking deep breaths. River was hoping that the jump hadn't caused any trouble for the baby. Nothing felt off, so he had to trust that everything was okay. She kept on treading in place.

It was then that River realized that the lake they had jumped into was salty. She tasted salt on her lips when she ran her tongue over them as she took in breaths of fresh air. How odd, that a lake, and not an ocean, had salt water. Well, this was a different planet and each planet had its own rules. Just another wonder she uncovered in her journeys. Though as interesting as it was, the saltiness did deter this body of water from being drinkable, and since neither she nor the Doctor had noticed any other bodies of water in the jungle as they had explored/been chased, finding safe drinking water might be problematic down the line.

"Ha ha!" The Doctor suddenly cried out, breaking River from her train of thought about safe water. "Now wasn't that a rush of excitement?! I haven't done that in ages."

River looked over to him and saw that he was positively excited; enjoying the adrenaline rush the jump had given him. His grey eyes were lit up with a combination of happiness, relief, and pride. He was always happy with himself for being able to get out of situations without having to cause any harm. And with that sort of an exit away from the blue natives, he had.

While River was still uncomfortable with the recent landing in the water, she couldn't help but smile at her husband's happiness. It was always so funny, the things that brought him joy. River did have to admit to herself, that the jump was exciting. The rush of danger was always fun. And this recent trip into the water had done numbers on both of their hair. River curls were drooping down along side her head, starting to straighten out a bit, and the Doctor's hair was slicked back all save for that wonderful floppy piece that never stated out his eyes.

The two of them continued to tread water for a few more seconds when suddenly an arrow came rushing by the Doctor's face. It came so close that it ruffled the bit of hair that usually fell in front of his eyes. Both of their gazes quickly darted from the arrow now sinking into the lake and then up in the opposite direction.

Up at the top of the cliff where they had jumped from were the natives. And as they continued to gaze, they noticed small black spots in the air. Those black spots started getting closer, moving faster, hitting the water around them with a sickening zooming sound. Those black spots were arrows. They were still being shot at.

"Swim Doctor! We have to get out of their range!" River yelled as she turned her back to the arrows. She let go of the Doctor's hand and instantly started perform her best version of a front crawl at full speed. She swam as fast as she could, away from the spot where the arrows were being directed. Instead of making a beeline towards the shore of the jungle, she decided to stay in the water and swim parallel to the shore. The water gave them distance from their hunters on land and also gave them some form of cover from the arrows in the air. River was glad as she kept paddling forward that her husband had the same understanding and was dutifully swimming behind her. Once again, she was so thankful that she wasn't in this situation with a younger version of the Doctor. If she had been, he might not have followed her orders so easily, and if the situation was reversed and she was the young one, she knew that she wouldn't have either.

But that was neither here nor there. Both of them were very well established with each other and knew to follow one another's orders when necessary. Plus, the general idea of getting out of the arrows direction was pretty obvious.

The two of them continued to swim hard and fast. They could hear the arrows still hitting the water behind them, but the sound was growing softer, the ripples in the water were now only being caused by their own movement, rather then the weapons whizzing into the lake. They kept on swimming for five minutes, then ten, then fifteen, and it was then at twenty minutes when River cast a glance over her shoulder mid stroke and looked up toward the now far away cliff from where they had jumped. The blue and silver hunters were no longer visible. Not that they were blurry our out of focus, they simply weren't on the cliff's edge anymore and there weren't any arrows being sent into the water after them. All of that was gone.

River and the Doctor were no longer being pursued. They were safe…for now.

It was then that River stopped swimming and looked around and really realized where she was and what she was doing. She took in the water around her it seemed to hit her like a brick wall. She was in the middle of reasonable sized body of water, about 500 feet off shore. She really hated water. River had registered that she was in water when they dove in around twenty minutes before, but the rush of adrenaline from their pursuers had given her momentum, had given her distraction. She was able to force that fear away. That stupid fear that she wished she could just simply be rid of. But she couldn't. It seemed to always tighten its grip on her. Damn the Silence and Kovarian for forcing a weakness upon her!

River started to twist a bit in the water, a mix between treading and swimming, and in the end, she ending up going nowhere. Her breathing quickened and she felt a knot form in her stomach. She didn't know if that was due to morning sickness, a side effect from the jump, the heat from the jungle environment mixing with cold water, or simply the fear that was slowly corrupting her, but she knew that no matter the cause she didn't like it. It made her tense and uncomfortable. The Doctor was so close to her that all he had to do was simply reach a hand out and he was able to touch her. He gripped her right shoulder and then her left, forcing her to still and face him eye to eye.

His grey eyes met green ones. River registered concern and understanding in the grey ones while the Doctor noticed panic and humility in the green ones. He held his grip on her and she moved her hands to his shoulders as well, holding them tightly.

"River," The Doctor stated in a low voice that she usually found sexy, but at this moment was more parental sounding, "You are alright. This is just water. I know, I know what water does to you, but you are free, safe, and not trapped." And with that he let go of her shoulders and removed her hands from his own frame. He even scooted back a few inches away from her in the water, giving her space.

She eyed him silently. His gaze never left hers. He smiled gently. They continued to tread.

"You are perfectly in control River," He continued. "Yes, you are in water, but you are safe. You can over come this. You can beat it. I believe in you Doctor Song."

He was right. She knew that at this moment, they were both safe. They were simply treading water in a very cold lake. She wasn't in any danger, as long as they didn't count hypothermia, but that was a few hours off and she knew that they'd be out of this before that would even begin sink in.

She was River Song for goodness sakes! She should be handling herself better than this. She had other more important things to think about and be scared of. Having a child and dealing with her marriage should worry her more than some simple water. Screw this, River thought to herself. She was going to be all right. She always was. She was one day going to get over her fear of water for good and today would be the start of that. She didn't want to have this crippling and embarrassing thing hanging over her head for the rest of her life.

She closed her eyes, took in three deeps breaths, and then opened them and faced her husband. He looked at her expectantly with a slight mix of worry and hope. A small tight smile crept on her face and he knew that it took a lot of effort for her to put that smile on and breezily say the next few words that came out of her mouth.

"You are right husband. It's fine. Now, let's make our way to the shore."

And with that she swiftly turned sideways to him and started swimming full out towards the sandy beach that was about 500 feet away.

The Doctor let go a sigh of relief and followed right behind his wife. He knew that she hadn't conquered her fear in just a few short minutes, far from it. But, she was able to put on a small act of bravery and confidence. A small act that would one day be the real deal when she would be in water. Letting go of fears took time, and he was just glad to know that today embarked the first step in the positive direction to breaking that fear. The phrase 'fake it till you make it' came to mind as he continued swimming.

He couldn't help but smile at the sheer amazingness of his wife. He watched her swim in front of him with strength and speed and he was completely captivated. She was brilliant in all elements, be it combat, facing fears, solving problems, making love, teaching, rule breaking, everything. What a woman. He then noticed that in his assessment of River Song, he had fallen a few paces behind her.

Behind her….that wasn't a bad view if he did say so himself…not a bad view at all…

He mentally and physically slapped himself as he quickened his swimming pace, trying to catch up. He chided himself, as he grew closer to her. Now was _not_ the time to let his thoughts wander _there_ …He could admire River Song and all her glory back when they were safe in the Tardis…and not in the middle of a bloody freezing lake. He could let his emotions overtake him and truly show her what he thought of her. Fully act upon his desires. Even in the water, his cheeks flushed a bit at thoughts like that, even after all of this time.

"There's a time and place," He muttered to himself with a frown. He sighed inwardly. He used to have so much control and slight oblivion when he was younger, but Rassilon help him, River had changed so many things about him. She drove him crazy, but he loved it. Both of them were only a few feet away from the shore now.

Finally, they hit land.

River got to the beach first, and stood up in the shallow part of lake and then dragged herself a few feet away from the edge of the water and plopped down in the sand. She rested her head on her knees and just started blankly at the water before her.

The difference in temperature between being in and out of the water was vast. The water was cold and the humidity outside of it made it feel stifling and sticky. That's what you get in a jungle environment.

The Doctor followed suit in River's actions and the two of them sat there in silence for a few minutes, catching their breath and just enjoyed the fact that they were now out of the water and able to rest. They had been swimming for a half hour and it had tired them a bit.

After another minute or so of silence, the Doctor took off his now soaked tweed jacket and started to wring it dry, as best he could. River had a similar idea and took off both of her black heels and tipped them upside, allowing some built up water to drain out. Overall though, they were both soaked to the skin and with no clothes to change into at that moment, they both knew that they would have to just deal with it. Though it did cause River some slight worry that her white button up blouse was now practically painted onto her frame. She knew that her ever so small baby bump was barely noticeable, but she was worried that the Doctor would catch on. But then again, this was the Doctor, and so many things went right over his head. She hoped that this too would go unnoticed. The sooner her shirt dried out and didn't cling quite so tight to her middle, the better. She was thankful that she had decided to wear a tank top underneath the button up. It may cause her have one more layer to dry, but it was one more layer covering up her secret.

Once the process of attempted drying was complete, the Doctor stood up, brushed off the sand from his pant legs, and put on his jacket again. River put her shoes back on, stood, also brushed off the sand, and then ran her hands through her curls, or what used to be curls. Now her hair was more flat than curled. She tsk'd at that.

"Okay, plan!" The Doctor announced suddenly with a clap of his hands, startling River a bit and distracting her from her hair. "We need to get back to Tardis. Hopefully by the time we arrive, she'll be all charged up and ready for take off. Let's move out!"

"Okay, but Sweetie, I think you are forgetting one thing. Somewhere out in the jungle is a group of natives from this planet who want to kill us on sight. Now I usually love a good showdown, but right now we are at a disadvantage without workable weapons or screwdrivers." River countered.

"Right you are Professor, but as I've said in the past, without weapons, we hold the moral high ground, and with a bit of luck, we'll reach the Tardis before we run into the natives."

River eyed him skeptically. He looked so sure that things would turn out fine.

"Alright then Doctor, lead the way."

And with that, both started walking down the beach, in the opposite direction from the cliff they had jumped from. There were two reasons for that. One, from what they could tell, it would be a very steep and almost impossible climb for them if they tried to follow their trail from before. Even most of the jungle around them seemed pretty steep and hill ridden. And two, they wanted to give themselves as much distance as possible from the blue and silver hunters. So, walking down the beach and until they came to more level ground seemed like the most sensible option. And then they would head into foliage and cut through and hoped that they found their Tardis before something else found them.

The pair walked in comfortable silence for about an hour. Sure, they would have an occasional thought to say or random bit from a past adventure, but for the time being, silence was fine. They had finally become linear enough, where neither one had to impress or teach the other younger one. Usually one of them was far more experienced and guided the other during adventures, but now, now, for this moment, they were able to stand on equal footing. They both knew that they had gone through Manhattan and the loss of Amy of Rory. They both knew that they were married. They both knew that River's time in prison was up and that she was able to live a relatively normal life as a professor. They hadn't consulted diaries yet, but it didn't matter at this point. Just by seeing one another, they could judge on where they were in each other time lines. The pain and experiences of their lives both showed on their faces and in their eyes. They could sort out the finer details later. River just hoped that this Doctor was the Doctor that she had seen during her previous five encounters, the one who was linking up so linear that they could almost refer to themselves as being on the slow path.

River and the Doctor were so used to jumping in and out of each other's lives and time lines, but their past few adventures together had taught them that being linear wasn't so bad and it was quite enjoyable and gave them a sort of refuge and safety that neither had known would happen or would be wanted.

On they walked, leaving tracks in the sand only to have them washed away by the waves lake; a good way to make distance and not be followed. The sky was ever so slowly changing colors as they walked. When the two had crashed onto the planet, it had been bright blue above and the middle of the afternoon, but some time had now passed and the sun was now slowly starting to set, causing the jungle to their left to turn from a mixture of lime and Kelly green to a more somber shade of hunter green.

Every once in a while, River would stumble ever so slightly. She simply chalked it up to the Doctor as the uneven sand beneath their feet, but she knew that she was getting a bit dizzy. Nothing extreme or health affecting. It was a simple side effect to pregnancy. Very common in the early months. She knew that, and knew to not be too worried by it, but the Doctor had no understanding, no grasp of the situation in which she was. He took her words for the truth, that it was just the uneven sand, but he tucked the incidents away in his thoughts. He didn't want anything to be wrong with River and he would make sure to keep a sharper eye on her. She was his wife after all. And for all intensive purposes now, his one and only companion.

They continued walking. Another hour passed and slowly but surely, the landscape in the jungle along side of them was flattening out and looking ever more suitable for walking. Both River and the Doctor would be happy to start walking on solid ground again, instead of sand. Though, the Doctor thought that with light starting to fade, and the jungle growing darker, it might be best for the two of them to stop and rest for the night. Fortunately, their clothes were almost completely dry now, except for the Doctor's tweed jacket that is. That still was slightly wet, but that's the price you have to pay when you wear cool clothes, the Doctor thought. It would dry out eventually.

It was then, when the sky was starting to darken due to night approaching, that River felt an uneasy change. That knot that she had felt in her stomach before returned. She knew that nothing was truly wrong; it was simply morning sickness (actually known better as any time of the day sickness) rearing its ugly head. And of course it had to happen now of all times. Just perfect.

The Doctor stopped walking when he realized that River wasn't right beside him and was standing perfectly still a few feet back. He turned and closed the few paces between them. He saw that she had a mixed expression on her face: half annoyance and half….displeasure if he was interpreting things correctly.

"River, are you alright?" He asked slowly as he reached out to touch her arm. As soon as he made contact, she flinched away from him and dove into the jungle to her left. She only wandered in a few feet, so the Doctor was easily able to follow her.

"River, what's wrong?!"

At the exact moment the Doctor asked his question, River fell to her hands and knees on the dirt floor of the jungle, thankfully facing away from him, and threw up.

The Doctor stood there a moment, a little dumbfounded. But after a few seconds, he sprang into action, trying to aid his wife. He knelt down next to her on the ground, leaving only inches between them.

"Riv, are you okay?! Is there anything I can do to help?! Tell me what's wrong!" He practically ordered her. He didn't mean to sound harsh, but in all their time together, he had never seen River sick. He'd seen her injured, tired, emotionally unstable, angry, frustrated, weary, but never sick. This was something new and that startled him. Scared him even. This was _River Song_ and she was unstoppable. She was a super hero.

River didn't answer the Doctor's questions and continued to empty her stomach. She tried to push him away, and when that failed, tried to move away from him, but he held her firmly, with one hand on her back and one on her shoulder, giving her support as best he could. He'd never really done this sort of thing before, but he hoped he was doing ok, the supportive husband thing. He noticed that she was shaking just slightly.

He just held onto her until she finished. She attempted to get up and succeeded, but as she made her way out of the tree line of the jungle and back to the beach, she felt dizzy once more and stumbled again. The Doctor was right on her heels though and guided her towards some low level rocks a few feet away from them on the beach. Once he had her there, he sat her down and joined her on the adjoining rock next to hers. He let go of her, giving her space to collect herself and breathe. He didn't know what to do with his hands so he quite literally sat on them for a moment. He knew that she probably didn't want to be touched at this time.

River looked away from him, grateful that he hadn't run away at the sight of her being sick, and was pleasantly happy that he had helped her over to rocks, but now she felt stuck. He would ask questions and she knew that now was not time for answers, well, completely true answers that is.

She took a deep breath as she focused on the sand below her feet. She stared intently at each individual grain that she could. She was amazed at how something so small could form into something so big, so different. She then snorted inwardly to herself. She was amazed at rocks forming together and yet she was completely unfazed by the similar idea of a child forming within her. Less than a day ago she hadn't known that she was pregnant, and here she was accepting it and all of its symptoms with no problems. She had realized that something was different about her for a couple of weeks before taking the test, but it wasn't until that morning that everything had been clear cut and known. Maybe that's why she was now focusing on the tiny sand particles under her feet instead of focusing her attention towards the man sitting next to her whose gaze was practically boring a hole into her head. She had given herself some time to slowly come to realization and conclusion that something was different. She had waited to take the test, and not just sprung the knowledge on herself. She wanted to give herself time to come to terms with it, and when she did, and she took the test, she was completely okay with. Happy even. She was happy and decided in the fact that she was going to be a mother.

But now, the Doctor was staring her down, waiting for answers, answers that were probably not even on his radar at the moment. She knew that the Doctor was like her, and would also probably need time to come to terms with her condition. She didn't want to just spring the news on him and wait for a reaction. So that's why she knew that she had to keep this from him for just a bit longer. She swore to herself that she would tell him once they were back on board the Tardis. Judging by the time of day, she knew that probably wouldn't be until tomorrow, so that gave him some time to witness her symptoms, come to his own conclusions and once she told him her news, everything would fit into place and it wouldn't be so jarring…she hoped.

River felt guilty at this train of thought, but what good would it do by telling him right here right now? They were in the middle of a jungle, possibly being hunted down by its natives, with no working weapons of screwdrivers, and they were ways off from the Tardis. If she told him now, it would only give him stress and heighten the importance of her safety on this trip. She knew how to keep herself safe and if push came to shove, she would tell him if there was a chance there was danger to her or their baby. But right now, aside from some tiredness and mild morning sickness, she was fine. She may be really hungry at the moment, but that was her biggest concern. She didn't want to upset him if she didn't have to.

River also didn't want to do what Amy had done in the past. Of all the times that Amy could have told the Doctor that she was pregnant, she had chosen possibly the worst one. Her mother had announced it to the Doctor in the middle of a warehouse in 1969, in the dark, while they were defending themselves from the Silence and what turned out to be little Melody Pond in a spacesuit. River did not want to repeat that kind of announcement process. The Doctor had been so worried, so panicked over Amy being in her condition and facing the threats that she was, Rassilon knows what he would do if River did the same as her Mother. Since it was his child and she was his wife, River was sure that similar circumstances might just stress him out enough to regenerate on the spot. River would not make the same mistake that Amy had made and put the Doctor in a more stressful situation that he was already in. Always hide the damage.

So, she knew that she'd have to skirt around the truth, just for a little while, and then she could tell him her good news.

River looked up and faced her husband. He looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to say something. His eyes were guarded a bit, as if he was waiting to hear bad news, but they also showed sympathy, concern, and love. She understood all of that because she knew that if you were to witness someone being sick in front of you, normally good news would not come from it. And as for the other emotions his eyes held, she knew because of who she was, that those emotions would always be in his eyes when it came to her, as long as she was with a version of the Doctor as he was now, older, mature, married. She dreaded to think what it would be like to be going through this with a younger version of her husband who was not her husband. The Doctor that she had met at the Byzantium certainly wouldn't have held her when she wassick, and wouldn't be waiting for her to talk. He simply would be demanding answers. She silently thanked the Tardis once more for bring her to _her_ Doctor, the one who she was currently so intertwined and linear with.

She continued to stare at her silent Doctor and knew that now was the time to speak. She silently prayed that her acting skills were up to par.

"Okay Doctor, I know that you think something is wrong, but I can honestly say that I am fine." That was the truth, mostly. Nothing was truly wrong with her. Just morning sickness. Now that she was finished throwing up, she did feel much better.

The Doctor frowned and turned on what River and others had dubbed his 'puppy dog eyes'.

"River," He countered as he shifted and freed his hands, "You are not fine. I just saw you become ill! And, you were stumbling around earlier, like you were dizzy. Don't think I didn't notice. It wasn't caused by the uneven sand. And," He then brought up a hand to her face and gently cupped it. "And, you are pale. Now that's probably to do with the being ill part, but still, something is not right and I want to know why."

"Doctor." She had a warning sound in her voice, like she was going to evade him. She looked away and focused at the ever-darkening jungle.

"No!" He said a little harsher than he'd intended. He let go of her face and grabbed both of her hands in his own and forced her to look at him. River could see that his grey eyes only held worry and a bit of frustration, but thankfully not anger. "Don't try to placate me like when I was younger. I know things now and I know how you are. Something is obviously up and I want you to tell me. Please! Don't you trust me?"

"Always."

"Then why won't you tell me what's made you sick? Is it an allergy, and illness, something else? I mean, I'd scan you in a heart beat with my sonic and find out immediately, but since that isn't working, I need you to tell me what is happening."

"I can't."

"Why?! Why not?" He almost growled. His jaw was set and he still hadn't released her hands. "After everything we've been through, everything we are, everything we've done, why can't you be honest with me about whatever this is?"

River really felt sorry for the Doctor. She knew how hard it was when he didn't know everything, and since he was who he was and had gained so much experience in their relationship, he thought that there wasn't much that they couldn't talk about. They were equals now. But, she knew that if he was reacting like this without all of the facts, she knew that she didn't want to face the Doctor in this situation with all the facts, so she said the first word that came to mind.

"Spoilers."

The instant she said that word, he let go of her hands and leaned away from her bit. River kept her eyes down. She knew that by now, he hated the word spoilers. It was a word that put distance between the two of them, set them apart, because it meant that one or both held knowledge that the other didn't. But, River did want to give him hope, even if it was a guess at best.

"Yes Doctor, spoilers." River said slowly, reaching out and taking his hand in hers now. He looked her and his face was blank. "But, don't you worry, it won't be spoilers for long. I promise. It just can't be now. But you will find out very soon."

"I feel like this is Demon's Run all over again, you holding some very important knowledge and me being stuck with not knowing anything until the very end." He said somewhat bitterly but nonetheless accepting. He knew how spoilers worked, as frustrating as they were.

River couldn't help but smile at the Demon's Run comment. His reaction to the truth about her had been better than she could have ever imagined. Once he connected the dots, he was so happy and astonished at who she was.

"And I hope your reaction will be just the same Doctor. Not the 'where the hell have you been' part, but what came after it. You were so giddy when you found out the truth."

There. She had dropped as many hints as she could. He had seen her ill, she had told him her news was spoilers, and that she had wished for him to have a positive reaction in the end. Maybe that would let some hypothesis form and when she explained everything, his reaction would be positive and the revelation would not be so out of left field.

River hoped that she was doing what was best. She always wanted to protect her Doctor. Never let him see the damage. Not that having a baby was damage, but some things had to be dealt with in the proper time and place.

"Alright River," The Doctor said with a sigh. "I trust you. Spoilers are spoilers. But can I ask you just one more question, please?"

She nodded as he looked her pleadingly, almost frightened.

"You are okay then? You aren't seriously ill right? I'm…I'm not going to face the possibility of…of losing you? I mean, after Amy and Rory….I…I don't think I could live through it if something happened to you as well," He said in a soft voice, almost like a child.

Oh Rassilon, now she felt horrible. Here she was, side stepping the truth about their soon to be child and he was thinking that she might be dying or leaving him. He was always fearful of losing his companions, because in the end, they did always leave him, one way or another. She quickly pulled the Doctor into a fierce embrace, holding him close. He reciprocated immediately and clung to her. She sometimes forgot how deeply damaged he was since the loss of Amy and Rory. River had to even talk him out of not being the Doctor and going into retirement at one point. He never seemed to take anything quite for granted anymore. And River had noticed that on a few occasions, the Doctor had almost seemed worried about losing her in the future, like one day she simply wouldn't be in his life due to some unforeseen accident or death, but that was just absurd to her. She'd always be there for her husband, and now, their soon to be Time Tot.

"Don't worry Doctor, I'm not leaving you anytime soon. I promise." She whispered in his ear. He rested his head on shoulder as they continued to hold one another.

Now, the Doctor knew where River Song would eventually end up: The Library. But he could never shake the fear in the back of his mind that the universe wouldn't be too cruel to him to take River away from him more than once in his lifetime. He had lost so much in his life, especially recently with Amy and Rory, that just the idea of something being wrong with River made his hearts stop with worry. River was his saving grace, a constant that was never a constant. He simply needed her in his life now, because he had grown to love her. It took a long time for him, but after all of the flirting, the adventures, the impact of their first meetings (from both perspectives), and her utter devotion, he couldn't help but finding himself eventually in love with her. She was his wife and he was her husband.

They held onto each other for another half a minute and then separated. The Doctor quickly composed himself and put on cheerful smile, yet his voice couldn't hide that tiny bit of concern that lingered within.

"So, River, you say you're okay, and I believe you, but how are you feeling right now?"

"Much better Doctor, I swear." River replied with total honesty. The morning sickness had passed as quickly as it had come. "But I do wish I could rinse my mouth out or brush my teeth. Too bad the lake water isn't drinkable due to it being all salty."

The Doctor brightened up at her musing and flashed a big grin as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a mini toothbrush in a clear case. He handed it to her excitedly.

"Here we are River Song, one toothbrush per request. I just happened to have one on me. Did the same thing with Martha Jones way far back when we traveled. Happened on a trip to see William Shakespeare. Don't worry, this toothbrush is brand new and comes with nice minty tooth paste." He explained.

River just stared at the toothbrush in her hand, slightly amazed.

"I wish I could help you with whatever you are dealing with dear, but at least I can provide a little relief with a new toothbrush. Husband duty and all that, you know. Taking care of the wife when she needs it."

River kept staring at the toothbrush in her hand. She didn't know why, but it brought her happiness that she didn't expect. Her husband, even in his lack of understanding the full situation, was helping her as best he could with the symptoms of her pregnancy. A few small tears came to her eyes and she quickly stood up and started walking towards the water's edge, away from the Doctor's view. She wiped away the few tears with one hand and popped off the case holding the toothbrush with the other. It was silly how her hormones were affecting her. Crying over the happiness at seeing a toothbrush and her husband's gesture. Just plain silly, but understandable, she tried to reason. She couldn't help but smile.

River quickly brushed her teeth and was relieved when all she tasted was minty goodness. Once she was done, she returned back to the Doctor, who had now set his tweed jacket on the sand as a blanket. He was sitting cross-legged with his blue diary open in his lap and a pencil in his hand. She sat down on the available space of his coat and took out her own Tardis blue diary from her pants pocket. She would be ever thankful for the Doctor in teaching her how to make clothing pockets bigger on the inside. He had used that trick for far too long and eventually she weaseled him into giving her the gift of storage space as well. A perk he told her, for being his wife.

"So Doctor Song, where are we for you?" The Doctor asked inquisitively. His normal upbeat demeanor had fully returned and River was relieved at that. This was how it should be. The Doctor and River Song, enjoying each other's company, comparing diaries, and experiencing one exciting adventure after another.

"Well," River began in a truly happy tone as she opened her diary to the latest entry, "The last trip I had with you was to Saturn 8. What a wild evening that was. Have you done that yet?"

The Doctor's face lit up with smile as he nodded.

"Yes! In fact, Saturn 8 was the last adventure I had with you as well. Blimey, I don't mean to be tempting fate or anything, but can you believe that our last five trips have been on the exact same time line? We've been linear all the way. I wonder why that is? Maybe the Tardis want's to keep us together or we are just extremely lucky?"

River could take one guess at why they were meeting in order for a change and she knew that it probably linked to the Tardis knowing that she and the Doctor would want to be together for this unexpected life event.

But to answer his musings, she simply stated, "I don't know Sweetie, but it certainly has been most welcomed. I've really enjoyed being on par with you recently."

"So have I. After never knowing what version of you I'm going to run across, it has been quite wonderful to see the same you again and again. It makes me feel almost feel like we are normal married couple." He stated.

"A normal married couple who is made up of two different alien species with varied ages and experiences dashing about time and space in a blue box you mean."

"Obviously."

"Then yes, after syncing up these past few times, we are starting to act like a normal married couple." River said with a smile. The Doctor returned her smile and then a brief look of question flashed upon his face.

"So, since we are doing diaries at the moment, what would you like to call this adventure, Professor Song?" The Doctor asked as he brought his pencil to paper.

River thought for a moment, scrunching her green eyes ever so slightly as she wracked her brain for the perfect title. The Doctor loved it when she was in 'thinking mode'.

"How about 'Meteor Jungle Extravaganza'?" She suggested with a raised eyebrow. The Doctor tried to mimic her facial expression, but do to his 'delicate eyebrows', his look didn't hold as much statement as hers had, but it still made River laugh. Sufficient with his wife's now happier mood, he replied.

"I like the sound of that. Great title. Very cool." He said with a nod. They both made note of it in their diaries and then put them aside. Neither one knew how they weren't soaked beyond repair after being in the water for so long. Maybe in the past the Doctor had put some special waterproof chemicals on them or they were just really lucky. Either way, both diaries were in reasonably safe condition and this adventure had now been recorded.

And with that, the two of them cozied up to one another on the Doctor's tweed and reminisced over their five most recent linear adventures.

Saturn 8 had brought them a wild night of dancing in the year 6073 at a swanky space club called '8 Club Rules' that the Doctor had wanted to go to for years. He always loved a chance to break out his awesome dance moves, notably, the 'Drunk Giraffe'. All was well and good until a platoon of Judoon came barrowing into the club looking for a convict on the run. After a small firefight and some hide and seek, the convict, a rouge Zocci was captured. Once the madness had settled down, the Doctor and River had enjoyed one last dance which had then led them back into the Tardis for a pleasant round of sex before River had to be dropped off back at Luna University to teach her classes in the morning.

The adventure before Saturn 8 was engaging in another thrilling mystery in Victorian London 1890 with the ever-loveable Paternoster Gang. Madame Vastra had sent for the Doctor to aide them in figuring out why suddenly, Henry Gordon Jago's show, "Monstre Gathering", was featuring multiple alien races from far across the galaxy, aliens that had never before come to Earth. After investigating and the Doctor being put into the show as well, it was revealed, thanks to the Gang and River, that Henry himself was an alien and had collected other species on his travels and had plopped down on Earth where there weren't any aliens in the open, so he could impress the masses and make money. Thankfully in the end, an over enthusiastic Strax and a vengeful River finished off Henry swiftly, rescued the Doctor, and freed the enslaved alien races and delivered them back to their respective home worlds.

The trip before the "Monstre Gathering" incident involved River and the Doctor visiting the Musée d'Orsay in Paris 2015. In one of River's archeology classes, she was discussing famous art pieces that connected to historical events and some digs that she had been a part of. She only had scans to use in her classes and the Doctor thought that she deserved to see the art pieces in person, so he brought her to the museum for the view and to Paris for a bit of a romantic date. The two of them wandered the museum for hours, keeping score, pointing out moments in history that they had witness first hand, and just reveling in the beauty of the art surrounding them. Other visitors of the museum had never before witnessed such a couple who was so enthralled with the art around them, though it confused them when they heard bits of discussions about whether or not the portraits truly captured the profiles of the ones in the paintings, as if they had actually seen these historic and iconic figures in person.

After they were done wandering the museum, they grabbed a bite to eat at a near by restaurant, took in a theatre show, and ended up enjoying a late night coffee near the La Danse de la fontaine emergente. They had escorted one another back to the Tardis and finished the night off with an unexpected shared bubble bath that led to a much-expected night of fun between the sheets. River stayed with the Doctor for one whole day after their Paris excursion, just enjoying a "day in the Tardis" before she hopped out and back into her life of teaching.

The adventure before Paris 2015 was to Egypt 1996 where the Doctor and River snuck into a group of archeologists on a dig at the Bahariya Oasis, where the 'Valley of the Golden Mummies' was discovered. They were able to witness the historical discovery first hand and even assist with some of the excavating. River had just been over the moon, the Doctor hadn't been as thrilled, but he did enjoy seeing River in her element and after all of the events were done and over with, he did finally admit to her that it was a bit fun, seeing history being discovered through someone else's eyes. Just like how he enjoyed seeing companions witness the miracles of the universe. If he ever lost the picture, he could regain it by seeing the wonder and joy through someone else's eyes.

And finally, the trip before Egypt 1996, where their timelines had initially become linear and where their baby had begun, was Apalapacia. Though, this was the Apalapacia before the Two Amy's Incident and the outbreak of the Chen-7 virus. There weren't any Two Stream Facilities or ill Apalapucians. All that was there was what should be: a beautiful planet consisting of soaring spires, silver colonades, mirrored Glassmire Mountains, pinkish-purple skies, and many vacation resorts.

The two had enjoyed a day of hiking around the planet, sightseeing landmarks that could only be described as breathtakingly beautiful. After all of the walking, they enjoyed a buffet of exotic foods put on by one of the resorts on the planet. Once the sun had gone down and night had set in and they had indulged in too much fruit, pastries, and in River's case, wine, the Doctor and River found themselves in one of the resorts private hot springs. The hot spring was delightful and relaxing. The water was deep, warm, and inky black; the moon of Apalapacia shown bright and illuminated the hot spring; but instead of the moon being white, it was various shades of pink with dark purple stripes. And the night sky above them was anything but cold and black. No, the night sky was a swirling mix navy blue, purple, red, pink, and millions of twinkling stars and planets off in the distant.

The Doctor and River had eventually had enough of the water, but not of each other. The hot spring had relaxed them both, but had also awoken their arousal and they had raced one another back to the room they were provided at the resort. Once they had arrived, they threw their towels aside and engaged in a passionate session of lovemaking. This trip to Apalapacia was definitely better than the one before it, the Doctor thought. This trip was so much better in fact, he and River decided to stay there a whole week.

As River and the Doctor reached the end of their recount of their last five linear adventures together, they realized that a couple more hours had passed and that night had officially fallen upon the unknown jungle planet. The Doctor's tweed jacket they were sitting on was completely dry now, the sky had darkened to mix of blues, blacks, and stars, and the off-white moon shone brightly above their heads, illuminating the lake near them and giving them some light on the beach to see with.

It was then that they both realized that they were pretty much stuck stranded on the beach for night, for neither dared venture into the now almost pitch black jungle and there was no point in walking the beach in the dark where they could easily trip over a log or a rock. They also gloomily realized that they would have to go without food and water for the night due to the only water source available to them was a lake filled with salt water and the only food that they had come across was some fruit in the jungle's tree line bushes a half hours walk back that the Doctor had recognized as a species of fruit that looked and tasted delicious but carried a deadly poison.

Both looked at each other and shrugged at their predicament. They had gone through much worse in life than a night sleeping on a beach with hungry stomachs. Though, River did hope that they would find safe food to eat tomorrow, because she knew that normally she could push herself to the extremes, but now she was caring not only for herself but also for her child. She had to keep up her strength and that meant eating a reasonable amount. She consolidated herself with the fact that at least she wasn't nauseous anymore. In fact, aside from the present hunger, and mild thirst, she felt fine, better than fine in fact. All that reminiscing with the Doctor about their last few adventures had definitely put her in the mood. How could it not? With her current condition and discussing previous conquests with her and Doctor, both in bed and in the field of battle, she found herself rather flushed with excitement and a sudden desire to snog the Doctor senseless came to mind.

The Doctor was watching River carefully. Even though there wasn't much light illuminating the area around them, the moon gave off just enough light to make River shine, almost glow he considered as an after thought. Her green eyes were bright as she looked at him, almost hungrily…..Her skin was pale in the moon, but a good pale, a beautiful pale. Nothing like the sickly shade she had displayed a few hours before. Her hair had dried and her wonderful space curls had returned with all of their glory, framing her face. She looked wonderful.

The Doctor felt that sudden sensation of wanting that he had felt earlier in the middle of the lake return. River looked gorgeous and by Rassilon he wanted her, wanted to show her how proud of her he was for overcoming her fear of water, and for being brilliant with flying the Tardis earlier through that meteor shower, and for now just being dazzling in the moonlight.

River in moonlight. Probably one the best views he would ever witness in his entire life. Their discussion of past adventures had brought up certain details of their relationship, stuff that normally made him blush, but right now, it juts made him look at River with such acute focus that he thought his eyes might drill hole in the middle of her head. But this intensity came with a reason, for if he was staring, then that meant he wasn't acting on his emotions. He regretted it every second as he continued to look at her, but with their surroundings he knew that he wouldn't give in, that he couldn't. He had too many rules. It was so frustrating sometimes.

Both of them were facing one another and felt heat and they knew that it wasn't the jungle atmosphere affecting them.

Suddenly, River did the one thing the Doctor was hoping she wouldn't. She leaned into him and kissed him solidly on the mouth. The Doctor momentarily froze and then eventually gave in a little and returned her kiss. They stayed together for five seconds, ten seconds, fifteen seconds, twenty seconds. At twenty seconds into the kiss, River weaved her hands up to where the Doctor's bow tie was and hastily undid it, tossing it to the sand next to them. She then quickly pulled down the Doctor's red braces and started working on unbuttoning his shirt. The Doctor broke away from the kiss, taking in a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself, while he caught River wrists in his hands a lowered them to her sides as gently as he could.

River looked confused for a moment and then flashed a playful smile.

"Was I moving to fast Sweetie? Would you also like to do some undressing?" She asked breathlessly. Her eyes shown with excitement.

The Doctor closed his grey eyes, groaned internally, shifted slightly so that both of them were now on their knees facing one another, with him still holding her hands at her waist firmly in his grasp.

"Rule 1169, River," The Doctor somewhat shamefully whispered. He looked down, in half embarrassment, half frustration. Damn his rules sometimes! He should really change them, but he knew that he wouldn't. Not this one, especially after that one time. This was why the Rule was there in the first place.

"Rule 1169?" She questioned, her voice mixing between disbelief and slight annoyance. River was now frowning slightly as her breathing began slowing down. They were losing the moment, the heat. Was he rejecting her advances because he didn't want her tonight? Had her illness earlier put him off? She could have sworn that he was also feeling the sexual tension she had felt.

"Yes, Rule 1169….no….sex…on beaches…." He timidly spoke.

After he said it, he looked at her and she looked at him and she looked completely flabbergasted.

"Sweetie, what do you mean no sex on beaches? When has that ever been a rule?" The time traveling archeologist was now confused. In all the time she had been with her Doctor, she had never seen him say no to sex, at least after they were established as a couple, a married couple, a couple who knew each other. They must have done it at least once on a beach…But then she thought about it and they had began stuff on a beach, light foreplay, fun kisses, but nothing had ever really _happened_ on a beach. They had always gone back to the Tardis, or to a hotel room, or even Amy and Rory's house. Huh. River realized that they had never done it on a beach before. And then she was curious as to why, and why he was pointing it out to her, and where that Rule had come from.

"Okay, let me get this straight," River started as she broke out of his grasp and looked him straight on. The Doctor raised his head and returned her gaze. He still looked sheepish. Sort of like how her younger Doctor had been in the beginning when he was trying to explain who she was to a brand new time travelling Amy Pond in a red sweater on a different beach many years ago. "You are saying that we will not be having sex tonight, here on the beach?"

"Uh…," The Doctor felt himself starting to blush. "Yes, that's correct."

"Because of Rule 1169?"

"Because of Rule 1169."

"Doctor!? What is Rule 1169? When was it decreed? Why was it created?" She threw her hands up in frustration and as a way to keep the Doctor's eyes focused on something else other than her own. If he looked into her eyes now, he would see hurt and sadness from being turned down. River was rarely told no when it came to this. Everyone wanted a go at her and now she explicitly being told no by the most important person in her life. No matter if he had a Rule, it still hurt. Rejection was still rejection.

"Well, don't you remember River?" The Doctor asked somewhat surprised. "I made the Rule after we went to the Virgin Islands for an anniversary where you and I both suffered from…well…uh…it was rather unpleasant….there were all of those red spots…and there was itching…and it was kind of painful….ugh, River don't make me say it, it was embarrassing…and you must remember, you were there, the Virgin Islands…remember, from then we made Rule 1169…and…and you have no idea what I'm saying do you River?" He realized.

"None at all Doctor," river replied evenly, starting to put together the Doctor's rambling. She was starting to understand. Her pain was slowly melting away. Slowly.

"So, so you haven't done our anniversary at the Virgin Islands yet…."

"Nope, not yet, but I'm now a little apprehensive…I hope it's not all bad…"

"No! No. Some of it's good. Most of it's good. There's just an incident that uh…makes us…uh...which results in…" The Doctor felt like he was tripping over his own words and he knew he was blushing fiercely. He was hoping that darkness around them was hiding that.

"Which results in Rule 1169 to be established. No sex on beaches."

"No sex on beaches." He agreed firmly with a grim sort of smile. He knew that he had definitely ruined the mood they had going and he didn't really know how to fix it. So, he did what he thought of first. "I'm sorry River, for uh, leading you on, sort of. I mean, you were just so gorgeous there in the moonlight, and you amazed me so much today, and you seemed to be just as enthralled and I knew I had to stop…us before it got out of hand. Oh, and sorry for the slip about the anniversary trip you'll take in the future. Spoilers."

River blushed at the comment about her being gorgeous and amazing. That wasn't something the Doctor usually told her. She ran a hand through her mess of curls and smiled.

"Thank you for compliment Doctor, and for the apology. At least I know there's a reason why you were stopping. And at least it wasn't because you didn't want me." River said evenly, as her nerves started to calm.

The Doctor's small smile that he had on quickly faded. He realized that he had made River feel unwanted, and that was never okay. He never wanted to upset River if he could help it. After everything he had put her through when he was younger, unaware of whom she really was, and afraid what she represented for his future, he knew that he had treated her horribly at certain points. He felt like he would never be able to make it up to her before her eventual time came and he would have to happily wish her good luck as she strode off to that damned Library and out of his life forever. He then quickly scooted over to her side of his coat, closing the distance between them and enwrapped her in a big hug.

"River, I could never not want you. You're you! I mean, I may be stupid and a bit stand offish when I'm younger and overall pretty oblivious at times, but I'm _always_ fighting off my desire to be with you. You scare me and excite me at the same time. How could I not want you, my personal 'Hell in High Heels? Yowza!" He exclaimed.

"Really?" She asked with a chuckle.

"Really, River." And with that, he released her from the hug and brought both of his hands down and rested them on her hips. She quickened her breathing, not because she was excited now, but because she was worried. His hands were so close to her secret. Their secret. She didn't want him finding out this way. She felt tingling all over, half from nerves and half from arousal that this damn man before her put in her every time he even looked her way. No wonder she was in the condition she was.

The Doctor noticed she was trembling slightly and in a moment of spontaneity and kindness, tried to be what he had seen in Amy and Rory for all of those years, a devoted and supportive spouse. He had remembered Rory cuddling Amy when she need soothing and he thought, well, like mother like daughter, what the hell?

Still holding onto River by the hips, he slowly lowered himself down onto the ground, with his back against his tweed jacket. He pulled River down on top of him and sort of cradled her against his chest. She shifted slightly under his grasp to a more comfortable position (and one that wouldn't lead any sudden life changing revelations) and relaxed into an all ages appropriate version of spooning. In simpler terms, they were cuddling.

There was silence for a few seconds until River spoke.

"Um, Sweetie, are we really cuddling?" She asked in slight disbelief. Her head rested on the Doctor's chest and she just barely heard the pulse of his double heartbeat. It was one of her favorite sounds.

"I believe we are."

"Not that I disapprove, because I'm enjoying it very much, but what made you decide to cuddle? This is not usually your thing."

"Well, you have had a rough day, and I did just turn you down and hurt your feelings, and I wanted to comfort you in some, and because…because you are River Song and I want to hold onto you for as long as I possibly can."

' _And because I know that my days with you River are numbered and one day I won't be able to do any of this with you and I don't want any regrets when I have to say goodbye and send you off to that Library, off to your death. I want to enjoy every minute with you, because right now I'm not alone. You fixed me after the loss of Amy and Rory, and sometimes River, I need comfort too_.' He thought to himself.

Instead though he said, "And because I'm your husband and certain things, certain perks are supposed to come with the title and who knows what version of you I'll meet next? I want to take advantage of the time I have with you now."

River was stunned. She couldn't believe that this was the Doctor. She was so used to the awkward, child like, shy, easy to blush, barely acted like a normal guy who was her husband. She knew that their relationship was complicated, and hard, and practically impossible, but she wouldn't change a thing about it, she wouldn't rewrite one bit of their time together. And here he was, holding her and saying words that most women only dreamed of. But then River realized that he himself may want the same comfort that he was giving her just as much as she wanted it. The loss of her parents had changed them both in drastic ways and River had come to realize that he would sometimes try to emulate the way that Amy and Rory had acted around each other. Not that he was trying to make them into 'The Ponds', but that he was trying to have what they had, the 'together or not at all' attitude that the Ponds had demonstrated.

The lonely Doctor wanted a normal humany wumany relationship. Not that she would ever call him on it and not that he would ever admit it, but River knew that. Everyone needed someone and who was he closer to than River? She was his Amy and he was her Rory. They would complete each other, comfort each other, adventure with one another. Together or not at all. After the loss of Amy and Rory, that was their rule. Together or not at all.

As River processed this and snuggled up closer to her guy, she said the three small words that were always terrifying.

"I love you."

"I love you too." The Doctor replied immediately after. There wasn't any hesitation, any bit of being unsure, just a statement that was true. He did love her. He could admit that now and he wanted her to know that, for when she was sacrificing herself to save that Library and all of its people, and his old self was just staring at her helplessly, he wanted her to know that she was loved, by so many and so much, and by no one more than him.

River was so thankful for how much the Doctor had grown in their relationship. If only all of their meetings could be like this. She now knew that when she told him of her pregnancy, that everything would be fine. He took care of her now, worried about her feelings, wanted to show her the universe and take her on adventures. He would be able to handle the news. She was sure. This Doctor was more mature than she had ever known.

She snuggled into his chest and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight towards him. He could smell the salt water in her hair. They both had their own worries, but at this moment, they were at peace, in each other's arms. Both realized that after the day they both had experienced, ending it with a loving confession and a cuddle was just as great as ending with round of sexual passion. They both let themselves fall into an easy and comfortable sleep.

The night sky eventually turned from black to navy blue, to varying shades of purple, then red, and then into the normal blue to daylight. The sun was shinning above on this cloudless morning and a light breeze from the lake blew over the sandy shore, gently stirring the time traveling couple.

The Doctor and River woke up with in a few seconds of each other and slowly took in their surroundings. They were still wrapped up in each other arms and as they fully woke up and untangled, they realized something important.

They were not alone.

Standing over them was a small group of people with guns at the ready and uniforms. Both River and the Doctor instantly recognized the uniforms. The people standing before them were an exploration team from Luna University, and they did not look happy to see the Doctor and River.

XXXXXXXXXXX

First off, I'm sorry that the break between Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 was so long! My sincere apologies for the wait. Life just got in the way and it was hard to find time to write and edit this chapter. On the up side, I hope that having this chapter extra long was appreciated and enjoyed. It was definitely longer than I had originally intended.

Second, thank you everyone for reading this chapter and continuing to join me on this journey as I write. Thank you for the follows, shares, favorites, likes, and comments. I'm so happy that people enjoy what I write and want to see more. It means so much.

As usual, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please let me know in the comments or direct messages. Keep up the likes, reviews, follows, and favorites. Until the next chapter!

Thank you!


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